Under an almost cloudless sky , family members gathered and soldiers marched in full military dress . Taps echoed in the wind . A wreath of red , white and blue flowers was placed on a grave .

It is a solemn ritual repeated multiple times daily , year-round at Arlington National Cemetery outside Washington . But this ceremony on Tuesday at the resting place of Army Pvt. William Christman carried particular significance .

Christman , a civil war soldier , was the first to be buried at Arlington and the graveside remembrance was held to mark the start of the cemetery 's 150th anniversary commemoration , which will continue through June 16 .

Over that century-and-a-half , more than 400,000 active duty service members , veterans and their families have been buried there , according to the cemetery 's website .

Presidents , astronauts , Supreme Court justices and other notable Americans also have been laid to rest at Arlington .

`` It 's a place that is consecrated by all the heroes that are buried here , '' said Jack Lechner , the cemetery 's deputy superintendent . `` We have heroes here from every war that the United States has fought in from the Revolutionary War on . ''

The initial property belonged to George Washington 's extended family and then to Robert E. Lee , who left it at the start of the Civil War . Federal troops used it as an encampment , and the federal government purchased 200 acres in 1864 and established a cemetery .

More than 600 acres now , Arlington is mostly known for dignified rows of white marble headstones that sweep down an expansive , rolling tree-lined slope where the hallowed ground almost touches the Potomac River .

The cemetery is also a year-round tourist attraction with 250,000 visitors each month . Many flock to the most well-known grave -- that of President John F. Kennedy . It is marked by the flickering `` eternal flame . ''

For Phil Doyle and his family , visiting from Australia , it was one stop they knew had to be made especially with one of their sons training to be a helicopter pilot in the Australian Forces .

`` It 's an emotional thing walking in and seeing all the tombstones . It really hits you hard , '' said Doyle . `` It 's one of enormous sacrifice by so many people . ''

Rebecca McCarley , a police officer from Oklahoma City , has visited the cemetery before and says she is overcome by feelings of extreme gratitude .

`` It is absolutely awe inspiring the change of the guard by the Tomb of the Unknown . It 's such a huge sacrifice people made so that we could be free . ''

Barbara Christman Page , Christman 's great-grandniece , had been to the cemetery before . But she was never aware there was a family grave site , something she will make sure to change for her grandchildren .

`` It is so important . It also made us think that we need to pass this story on as opposed to just letting it stop right here , '' Page said . `` We are going to make sure that they know . We will probably bring them back so they , too , can visit William 's grave . ''

World 's most scenic cemeteries

A child of war , with a sense of purpose

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Ceremony honors first soldier buried there in May 1864

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Property was owned by George Washington 's family , Robert E. Lee

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More than 400,000 people are buried there , including John F. Kennedy